As part of today's White House Conservation in Action Summit, the Biden-Harris Administration has released America’s first whole-of-government Ocean Climate Action Plan to leverage the ocean as a powerful source of climate solutions.

The Biden administration has already set goals to generate 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030; protect 30% of the ocean by 2030; work toward zero emissions from international shipping by 2050; and eliminate the release of plastic into the environment by 2040. Spanning 70% of the planet, the ocean offers a wealth of opportunities to mitigate climate impacts, with the potential to provide one-fifth of the emissions reductions needed to reach global climate goals. 

In June 2022, nearly 100 environmental organizations and businesses released the Blueprint for Ocean Climate Action. With recommended actions across 12 key policy areas, the Blueprint charted the course for many of the action areas in the administration’s Plan.

The plan comes one day after the release of the newest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that found widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphere and biosphere have occurred as a result of greenhouse gas emissions. Human-caused climate change is already affecting many weather and climate extremes across the globe and has led to widespread adverse impacts and related losses and damages to nature and people. Vulnerable communities who have historically contributed the least to current climate change are disproportionately affected.

Please use this toolkit to thank the Administration for recognizing that the ocean is integral to the fight against climate change, but also to urge additional action moving forward to protect those being hit first and worst by climate change.

Please add your statement here so we can share them with the administration and press. 

We will be reviewing the Plan in the coming days, and will follow up with more detailed analysis and content when available.